Space in workshops or in homes is always at a premium. Consequently, it is well known in the prior art that solid surfaces such as tables or other work surfaces including beds, boards or other planar supports which fold down from a wall may be employed for a variety of purposes including everything from woodworking, to sewing, to crafts, to medical applications, etc. What is to the best of applicant's knowledge missing in the prior art and which is an object of the present invention to provide, is an improved folding work surface which folds neatly up against a wall and which deploys from the wall to provide a work surface having a length for example substantially equivalent to the full height of the wall between the floor and ceiling of the room, or otherwise generally equal to the height of the surface it is connected to. For example the work surface could be mounted within a box or cabinet, as in a fold-down first aid station, in which case it may be a bed and not a table. A horizontal surface extension is also provided which does not fold upwardly but, rather, remains operatively horizontal as the work surface is retracted and deployed that is, folded up and down, where, in the retracted position, the horizontal extension is tucked up out of the way adjacent the ceiling.
In the prior art of which applicant is aware, the following patents for folding tables mounted to walls, either taken individually or collectively, neither teach nor suggest the improvements according to the present invention: U.S. Pat. No. 1,601,112 which issued Sep. 28, 1926 to Cummings for a Wall Fixture; U.S. Pat. No. 1,688,533 which issued Oct. 23, 1928 to Eger for a Combination Work Bench and Tool Holder; U.S. Pat. No. 1,796,635 which issued Mar. 17, 1931 to Timmons for a Folding Wall Table; U.S. Pat. No. 2,616,774 which issued Nov. 4, 1952 to Prince for a Slide Away Table and Holding Frame Therefor; U.S. Pat. No. 2,716,044 which issued Aug. 23, 1955 to Overby for a Folding Wall Table; U.S. Pat. No. 4,100,858 which issued Jul. 18, 1978 to Bue et al. for a Folding Wall Table; U.S. Pat. No. 4,136,622 which issued Jan. 30, 1979 to Bue et al. for a Folding Wall Table; U.S. Pat. No. 4,155,609 which issued May 22, 1979 to Skafte et al. for a Wall-Hung Cabinet Arrangement; U.S. Pat. No. 4,263,854 which issued Apr. 28, 1981 to Moore et al. for a Cutting Table Storage Mechanism; U.S. Pat. No. 4,382,641 which issued May 10, 1983 to Abel for a Sewing Machine Storage Cabinet; U.S. Pat. No. 4,779,539 which issued Oct. 25, 1988 to Stiglich for a Wall-Mountable Folding Table; U.S. Pat. No. 5,513,574 which issued May 7, 1996 to Collins for a Wall Mounted Table Apparatus; U.S. Pat. No. 6,039,416 which issued Mar. 21, 2000 to Lambert for a Wall Mounted Pivoting Work Bench; International Application No. PCT/GB93/01340 filed Jun. 25, 1993 and published under Publication No. WO 94/13438 on Jun. 23, 1994 to Mallows for a Folding Workbench.